What should I pack (and other questions) for an Alaskan cruise?

We are doing the northbound Voyage of the Glaciers on the Coral Princess in July. I've only done Caribbean cruises and have no idea what to pack! Do I need winter gloves and heavy coat? I've read to pack layers of clothes. I assume binoculars and good camera, probably not sunscreen (ha!) but there's bound to be other "must have" things I'm forgetting. Like little comfort things....like a little throw blanket for sitting on the balcony? Extention cord? Extra hangers? Stuff like that.

And I have silly questions like will my cell phone work as normal, or will I need to turn it off or else it will cost me a fortune? (I never buy the wifi) And do people swim on the ship? My other cruises have been full of trivia and games through the day. Can I expect the same on a Princess Alaskan cruise? ANY info is welcome!!!

Hello, yes you should pack hat and gloves; yes pack for layers, raingear too. Check your ship stats to see if Coral has a heated pool. You can go into hot tubs; so bring a bathing suit. Your cell phone will work in Alaska; if you venture into Canada during shore excursions you may get zapped with roaming charges. Love trivia contests too; sure they will have them

Actually, you may want to pack sunscreen. And while I have never been on the Coral Princess every Alaska or northern Europe cruise I have been on has had fleece throws for passenger use; they are generally found in bins

on the pool deck. And every ship I have been on has been able to provide some additional hangers; just ask your stateroom attendant.

Through the years a number of Alaska packing lists have been posted on this forum. Hopefully the search function is working and you will be able to quickly locate several.

Thanks for the replies. I'm seeing that it can get pretty warm up there in July so I wasn't sure how much actual winter gear I would need. I don't want to waste suitcase space! Guess I will search for packing lists.

Don't forget bug spray. Mosquitos are Alaska's state bird!

Been to Alaska twice over the summer equinox. One time it was t shirt and shorts weather, the next year it was 40F and wet. Check the weather right before you go and plan accordingly.

When viewing the glaciers (Glacier Bay, Tracy Arm etc) it can be very cold and windy. Be prepared with hat and gloves even if it's predicted to be in the 70sF

If we are going in mid June, would we still need mosquito spray? How about sunblock? (we will have a good base tan when we go, but DH is kinda "pasty" even with a tan...)

If we are going in mid June, would we still need mosquito spray? How about sunblock? (we will have a good base tan when we go, but DH is kinda "pasty" even with a tan...)

Unless you're on a land tour, bug spray isn't needed much (once, in Sitka, walking a forested trail I regretted not bringing my DEET - which ironically I had on the ship as it lives in our travel toiletries bag all the time - so it's sometimes handy, but a tiny bottle will be plenty).

Sunblock - always. Reflected light off water (and ice on glacier days) will burn you FAST. I'm pasty enough I wear factor 15 from about now through October even in Vancouver, but bring my 'real summer' F50 to Alaska just like I do to Florida - every cruise, even in May, I see people who are well-scorched and should have done similar!

We did the Coral Princess to Panama Canal... that's among my favorite ships.

If suitcase space is at a premium, use the ship's beach towel or their bathrobe as cover on your balcony.

Not sure how far north you'll be but when we cruised Alaska in July previously some days just a long sleeve T-shirt was enough.

every Alaska or northern Europe cruise I have been on has had fleece throws for passenger use; they are generally found in bins

on the pool deck.

That's the first time I have read that anywhere. We will be on NCL Pearl beginning of August. I'm hoping they have them also.

The three Alaskan Princess sailings we were on had plaid woolish (not really fleece) blankets available. You show your room card, they scan it and then scan again when you return it. The first trip was in the 70 degree range in July. The 2nd trip we had sleet in June. The 3rd trip had one full day at sea of damp and fog and rain almost every day (late June.) Our 4th trip (RCL in June) was a mixed bag of weather, but walking around one day on the top deck, it had to be almost 80 with bright sun reflecting from the white deck. It was very warm and I was glad to have sun screen as we watched the whales. As someone else said, check the weather as close as you can to sail date. Juneau is in a temperate rain forest, so expect rain there and Ketchikan. (Although we had a 75 degree whale watching trip 2 times in Juneau with not a cloud in the sky. Just never know about Alaska. I pack my lightweight snowboard jacket (with hood/water resistant) every trip because no matter how warm the warm days are, the glacier days are ALWAYS very cool if not cold. I wear it on the plane because it is almost always cold when flying - and it saves room in the suitcase. There are always long sleeve t-shirts for sale cheap on the ships if you need to add one or two. Have a great time! Princess was AWESOME in Alaska. You are going to LOVE IT!

The three Alaskan Princess sailings we were on had plaid woolish (not really fleece) blankets available. You show your room card, they scan it and then scan again when you return it.

In all of my Alaskan cruises on Princess, I have never had my cruise card scanned to get a blanket. They have been freely available on deck.

I agree with the others who say that sunscreen is a good idea. I have gotten sunburns twice on Alaskan cruises. Once was sailing away from Seattle, and I had forgotten sunscreen. Luckily I was able to buy some (expensive) sunscreen in the ship shops. The other time was sailing away from Ketchikan. It was a warm day and I'd worn shorts, but it wasn't so sunny that I'd bothered with sunscreen. I fell asleep in a lounge chair that afternoon and burned my legs badly. Unfortunately, I learned that the ship shop does NOT carry aloe or anything for sunburns. Take your sunscreen and remember to use it!